The king adds another piece of hardware
by Rodger Bohn / @rodgerbohn
What’s going on guys? Rodger Bohn checking in here from the Q. Peeping Bron’s MVP speech right now. Nothing too moving, but I can honestly say that it was a pretty surreal experience watching the cat hoist the MVP trophy over his head in person. I’ve never seen anything like that in my 26 and a half years on the planet, personally. You had some of the C’s like KG, Pierce, and Allen standing their and showing their respect to LBJ while he was accepting the trophy. Then you also had Tony Allen, who decided that he needed to throw down a couple of dunks during the ceremony.
In game 1, the Cavs made Rajon Rondo look like Bob Cousy in the first half. They were still able to pull off a “W”, but if The Truth doesn’t go 5-17, we’re talking about a completely different ball game. Let’s see what the “big three +1″ bring to the table this evening.
Here’s some of the stuff running through my mind here at the Q:
-Uh Oh, looks like The Truth came to play. He’s definitely a rhythm guy, so it’s definitely scary once he stars getting buckets and gets to the line early on.
-There’s always a role for the a “corner three” guy in the league. The problem is, Anthony Parker can do so much more than that. AP seems to have accepted his role well, which speaks volumes about his character considering the fact that he went from being the best player in Europe to a 5th option in the NBA.
-While I’m ranting about Paul Pierce, many people tend to forget hot athletic he was back in the day. Check out this dunk contest that he and VC put on back in 95.
-Just saw on the jumbo-tron that LeBron is the 10th player in NBA history to win back to back MVP’s. Who can name the other 9? I can think of about 7 off of the top of my head, but am truly lost on the other two!
-Boston pulls their big three out of the game to sit the final 2:30 of the quarter. The way these last few minutes go is going to have a major impact as to which way the game sways. If the second unit can take care of the ball and at least stay even with where they’re at now, bodes makes me believe that this is going to be a close one down the line.
-While Rasheed Wallace has had a very nice career, the guy should have been a 10 year all-star. Think about it. How many 6’11 guys are there who can stretch the D as a pick and pop guy, play All-NBA defense, and also score with their back to the basket? Imagine if this guy would have played hard his entire career.
-Celtics reserves build upon the lead that their starters gave them. 26-22 at the end of 1, with KG, The Truth,and Ray Allen still chillin’ on the bench.
-Although Rondo isn’t shooting the ball especially well, I just popped my head up at the scoreboard and saw that he already has 7 assists. For those of you who don’t recall, Rondo dropped a Scott Skiles-esque 31 assists in a game for Oak Hill Academy during his prep days.
-Now we all know what Big Baby is doing now-adays and recall the hurting he put on the SEC in his pair of seasons at LSU, but how about him on the gridiron? Word on the street is that Davis wants to take a stab at the NFL once his career in the league is over. Good luck, baby.
-These single digit first halves aren’t going to cut it for LeBron if he hopes to win a ring. It worked in game 5 of the Bulls series because Jamison was en fuego. I”m guessing that will lively be his only 20 point half of the playoffs, so the King might want to turn it on now.
-Just as Boston starts gaining a little momentum, Bron hits the C’s with a patented “chase down”. It’s amazing how a phrase has been coined specifically for trailing a play and blocking someone against the glass, based off of one player. You wouldn’t believe how many times I heard players use that term this past weekend at the AAU tourney I was at.
-Even though Rondo just badly airballed that J, it doesn’t change the fact that he’s completely taking over this game. Held Mo Williams to 4 points in the first half while getting 8 points and 12 dimes for himself. Solidifying himself as a top-5 PG with his playoff performance.
-52-48 Celtics at the half. Time to hit the media room for a couple of diet pepsi’s!
-The Rondo domination completely controlling the game on both ends of court. Hard to believe that a guy can quietly have 18 assists as easily as he has thus far in the game.
- Honestly, that was one of the weakest flagrant foul calls that I’ve ever seen in a game. Varejao merely body bumped Ray Allen (who def won on Oscar for his collapse) and was given a flagrant one. Refs are calling this one a little tight this evening…
-With LBJ not in a groove, things aren’t looking too hot for Cleveland fans. The Cavaliers are struggling defending and can’t buy a bucket on the offensive end. They can’t even get a decent look or shot up, for that matter.
-The team D that Boston is putting on the Cavs is second to none. From the man to man defense, to the boxing out, to the help-side rotation, the C’s are straight putting on a clinic.
-83 to 60 Boston at the end of 3. Been a very long time since I’ve seen LeBron with just as many turnovers as assists. This is one of those nights.
-I can honestly say that I was not expecting this out of the Celtics, especially after the way that they defended Dwyane Wade last round. I thought LeBron was really going to get loose, but apparently I underestimated Boston’s team defense.
-Just got the box: At the end of 3, Mo Williams and Delonte West combined for 4 points in 43 minutes on the court.
-Mo Williams looking like he was still wearing a Bama’ jersey with that shot selection. There was a reason he fell to the second round of the NBA Draft.
-Just realized that Ray Allen had 20 points. Man, that guy is efficient. Scored 20 points completely within the flow of the offense without forcing anything. Looking more like Jesus Shuttlesworth than a guy who was drafted 14 years ago.
-Made me think of the battle that Ray Allen and Allen Iverson had in the Big East tourney. Still vividly remember being a 6th grader and being in awe of these two.
-Someone just threw a cold Bud Light on the floor after Paul Pierce sent Mo Williams crashing to the floor after the whistle blew. Never thought I’d say a ballboy with a 4.29 40, but I definitely saw one from the kid sprinting from the far baseline!
-KG will likely walk away with the W, but he just got put on another poster by a Cavalier. J.J. Hickson with dunk of the day, by far.
-Don’t know if I’ve EVER seen a crowd so hyped to cut the lead to 16 with 6 minutes left in the game.
-Correction: Make that 14 after a J.J. Hickson dunk.
-Find it really interesting that the Cavs are having Antawn Jamison play KG one on one on the blocks, without digging down or remotely showing a double team…despite the fact that Garnett has 5 inches on Jamison and can shoot over him every single time.
-After a few open looks from beyond the arc for Cleveland, it appears that the nail has been placed in the coffin in the form of a shot-clock beating jumper by KG with 1:14 left to put the C’s up 18. Mike Brown has emptied the bench, giving Boobie Gibson and Jawad Williams some token playoff burn.
-Game is final with Boston snagging a 104-86 W. Not the way the King would’ve liked to see things turn out, combining a lackluster personal showing with an 18 point loss.
-Player of The Game: Rajon Rondo. With 13 points and 19 dimes, he completely took over the game offensively for the Celtics. He also shut off Mo Williams’ water, keeping him in check to the tune of 4 points. This was the second consecutive game that the Louisville native dominated, continuing the reputation that he is building as one of the very best point guards in the world once the playoffs roll around.
-Alright guys, I’m out! I’m off til Game 5, but you best believe that SLAMonline will have some sick coverage for games 3 and 4 in the Garden. For now, I’m off to Around The Corner to get my 10 free wings for anyone having a game ticket (or in my case, media pass), so come stop up and say what’s up to a SLAM blogger if you’re in the Cleveland area!
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